Plantain Shepherd’s Pie

If you love traditional shepherd’s pie, you’ll really love this Caribbean twist on it: Plantain Shepherd’s Pie is the ultimate comfort food recipe and today this recipe with you!

Plantains have become a staple in our New England home. It’s the way I stay connected to my Dominican roots, by cooking up a plantain recipe at least weekly. This past week, I made my husband this Plantain Shepherd’s Pie for the first time and he fell head over heels for it. Spiced ground beef and carrots are layered under mashed almost ripe plantains (fully yellow, no black spots yet) and covered in a sprinkling of cheese that’s broiled to golden perfection.

Granted, it’s a hearty meal that you should accompany with a big green salad on the side, but sometimes in the Dominican Republic, we would use this as a side dish to a full meal. Because that’s the thing with plantains, they go with everything. Their slight sweetness really pairs well with the ground beef that we cook down with carrots, onions, tomato paste, and oregano. This Plantain Shepherd’s Pie recipe is a must if you’re trying to use a larger variety of starchy vegetables in your diet.

And if you think of plantains as the heavy vegetable they are typically made into – you’re wrong! In this shepherd’s pie recipe, I’ve mashed the plantains with soft butter and Greek Yogurt, to give it a lighter texture. It’s definitely one of my favorite recipes growing up and if you’re vegetarian, you can make my Three Cheese Plantain Casserole!